Israel (1) DefMin: CF’s good to go if Canadians need to go “The Canadian military will take part in an effort to evacuate Canadians in the Middle East should the conflict between Israel and Hamas escalate to a level that warrants it …. “Six years ago the Canadian Forces was involved in a whole of government evacuation. One thing I have come to know and appreciate about the Department of National Defence is there is constant planning…and preparing for whatever inevitabilities may come. We know the situation in Israel is dire,” Defence Minister Peter MacKay said during an exclusive interview with Sun News Network on Sunday morning. MacKay was attending the fourth annual Halifax International Security Forum which began on Friday and wrapped up Sunday ….”

More complaints about Toronto-based long-term care for vets “Articles about complaints of substandard care at Canada’s largest facility for war veterans have prompted several more people to come forward with stories of neglect. Some involved injuries to the frail elderly, who live out their last days and months at Sunnybrook Veterans Centre. John Marriott said his family was appalled this spring when they found his ailing 96-year-old father-in-law with a bloody mouth, and discovered his front tooth had been knocked out. Sunnybrook’s explanation, he said, was that the virtually immobile man had somehow wriggled his way out of bed and fallen. “We’ve been so traumatized by all of this,” Marriott said. “It’s like ‘One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ lite.” The new complaints, as was the case previously, come mostly from part of the 500-bed vets centre that houses the most infirm vets rather than the part which resembles a pleasant retirement lodge. Some, fearing reprisals, agreed to speak only on condition of strict anonymity, making it difficult to verify their accounts. Others were less reticent ….”

One columnist’s opinion“Prime Minister Stephen Harper was gutsy and correct when he announced at the change-of-command ceremonies in Ottawa that the DND budget will be reduced and that the military needs “more teeth and less tail.” In other words, military administrative costs are too high compared to operational costs — especially now that Afghanistan is (or soon will be) history. To some, given that the defence budget of over $22 billion is to be cut, it’s odd that the general (Andrew Leslie) who investigated and recommended cuts in the budget and more efficiency in the military, wasn’t appointed chief of defence staff ….”

“Canada’s diplomats in Moscow will have to work another three years in an embassy compound that’s vulnerable to terrorist attack and the prying eyes of foreign spies, The Canadian Press has learned. Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird was warned in an internal memo from a senior bureaucrat that Canada’s embassy in the Russian capital offers “almost no protection” against a terrorist attack. A leaked copy of the memo details the stalled embassy project, outlining why diplomats won’t be moving to a more secure facility until January 2016 instead of last July as planned. The delay has added nearly $30 million to the cost of the project, since Foreign Affairs received approval in 2008 to move the embassy to a more suitable building. A quarter of the increased cost — or $7.5 million — is for extra construction to keep unidentified “threats” from spying on Canadian diplomats in the new embassy …. Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Jessica Seguin said precautions are being taken to ensure that Canada’s personnel, interests and visitors are protected at its Russian embassy ….”